N9.3m fraud : EFCC arraigns Edo Deputy Governor’s brother

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission on Monday arraigned one
Joseph Ovbokhan Odubu and his company, Even Handed Services Limited,
before Justice P. I. Ajoku of the Federal High Court, sitting in Benin,
Edo State on a three-count charge bordering on forgery, uttering and
obtaining money by false presence to the tune of N9.36 million.

Joseph,
a brother to the deputy governor Edo State, Pius Odubu, who is also the
Managing Director of Even Handed Services Limited, allegedly used
forged documents to obtain a loan facility of N9.36 million on September
5, 2014 from First Bank Plc to facilitate the supply of chairs and
desks in Edo State.

One of the count reads:

“That you Odubu Joseph
Ovbokhan and Even Handed Services Limited on or about the 9th day of
September, 2014 in Benin within the Jurisdiction of this Honorable
Court, with intent to defraud obtained the sum of (N9,360,000.00) Nine
Million Three Hundred and Sixty Thousand Naira in credit from First Bank
of Nigeria Limited, by deceitfully presenting a letter of domiciliation
which you used as a farce and thereby committed an offence contrary to
Section 1(1) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act
2006 and punishable by Section 1(3) of the same law.”

Another count reads: “That you Odubu Joseph Ovbokhan and Even Handed
Services Limited on or about the 12th day of May, 2015 in Benin within
the Jurisdiction of this Honorable Court, with intent to defraud and to
facilitate fraud, forged a document captioned ‘REQUEST FOR CONFIRMATION
OF JOB COMPLETION TO OUR BANKERS (FIRST BANK, BENIN MISSION ROAD,
BRANCH’ purporting that the said document was received by Edo State Oil
and Gas

Producing-Areas Development Commission, with intent that it may
be acted upon as genuine, a pretext which you knew to be false and
thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 1(2)(c) of the
Miscellaneous Offences Act Cap M17 of the Revised Edition (Laws of the
Federation of Nigeria) Act, 2007 and punishable under Section 1(2) of
the same Act.”

Joseph pleaded not guilty to the charge when it was read to him.
In
view of his plea, the prosecution counsel, C. A. Okoli, asked the court
to fix a date for the commencement of trial and that the accused person
be remanded in prison custody.

However, the counsel to the
defendant, Osama Idehen, made an oral application for bail, which was
refused by the court as she was asked to file a formal application.
Justice Ajoku adjourned the case to November 22, 2016 for trial and ordered that the defendant be remanded in prison custody.